Secret Lover

Chapter 2: Homework and Heartbeats

Monday arrived with the usual classroom noise chairs scraping, backpacks dropping, and sleepy chatter. Daive walked in with earbuds in, trying to block out the world. His sketchpad was tucked securely inside his bag, right next to the math homework he had stayed up finishing.

“Daive!”

Sky waved him over, already seated near the window. Daive’s heart did its usual flip ridiculous, automatic, and annoyingly real.

“Saved you a seat,” Sky said, patting the empty chair beside him.

Daive nodded and sat down, slipping off one earbud. “Finished the homework?”

Sky groaned. “Kind of. I guessed on the last two.”

“You always guess on the last two.”

“And sometimes I’m right.”

“Rarely,” Daive muttered, smirking.

Sky grinned and leaned in closer. “You still love me anyway.”

Daive looked at him really looked at him and then turned away before his face could betray the truth. “Sure. As a friend.”

Sky didn’t catch the pause in his voice. Or maybe he did and chose to ignore it.

The day dragged on until lunch, when things started to feel… off.

Daive entered the canteen, tray in hand, looking for their usual table. He spotted Sky but this time, Yna was already sitting across from him, laughing about something. Her body language was easy, relaxed, familiar. Too familiar.

Daive hesitated for a second, then walked over and sat beside Sky. Yna looked up and gave him a polite smile just polite enough to hide the fact that she wasn’t thrilled to see him.

“Hi, Daive,” she said sweetly. “Sky was just telling me how you helped him survive math again.”

“I didn’t,” Daive replied flatly.

Sky laughed, clueless. “He did, though. He always does.”

“Must be nice having someone you can always count on,” Yna said, still looking at Daive. It wasn’t a compliment. It was a warning.

Daive ignored her, but his fingers clenched around his spoon. He hated this. Hated that she was here. Hated that he felt like an outsider at his own table.

After lunch, the tension didn’t fade.

In class, Sky and Yna were assigned to the same group for a presentation. She lit up, clearly pleased. Daive was paired with two students he barely knew.

From across the room, he watched Yna lean in and whisper something to Sky, who smiled in response.

Daive felt sick.

He hated that Sky smiled like that. Hated that Yna looked like she belonged there. Hated that he didn’t.

And more than anything he hated that he didn’t know what Sky was thinking.

Maybe Sky did like her. Maybe the reason he never noticed Daive’s feelings was because he had always been looking at someone else.

Someone… normal.

Later that afternoon, they met up briefly before heading home.

Sky was still cheerful, talking about their upcoming project, but Daive was distant. His responses were short, distracted. Sky noticed.

“You okay?” he asked, tilting his head. “You’ve been quiet all day.”

“I’m fine.”

“You sure? Did something happen?”

“No,” Daive said, trying to keep his voice neutral. “Just tired.”